Category: Viral

Given the current state of the world, performing live concerts isn’t a good idea. That’s not stopping Vanilla Ice, though: The “Ice Ice Baby” rapper is set to perform a show in Austin, Texas tomorrow, July 3. Virtually all concerts and live events have been canceled due to concerns about the pandemic, but social distancing could actually be easy to achieve at this show: The Texas Tribune reports that according to the venue’s organizer, as of Wednesday night (two days before the event), only 84 tickets for the performance have been sold.

This comes shortly after Texas governor Greg Abbott issued an executive order to shut down bars in the state. However, Emerald Point Bar & Grill on Lake Travis, where the show is set to take place, is classified as a restaurant, so it is able to operate at 50-percent capacity.

The order also bans outdoor gatherings of over 100 people. Emerald Point owner Barret Brannam noted the capacity for the event is set at 450 people, saying, “We’re not trying to buck the system — we’re going within the guidelines we’ve been given. Music is part of Emerald Point — and it will always be part of us going forward. […] We reduced the capacity to 450 people because that’s what we thought we could space with tables. It’s really not as gross as people are making it out to be.”

He added, “[Vanilla Ice] has already been paid. If I cancel the show, […] I’m just flushing money down the toilet. […] If only a couple hundred people come out, at least those people got to see a cool show.”

A few days ago, Vanilla Ice posted concert footage and wrote on Instagram, “I can’t wait to get back to this. The 90s were the best. We didn’t have coronavirus, or cell phones, or computers. we had 5.0’s, blockbuster, Beavis and Butthead, Wayne’s world, Chris Tucker and Jackie Chan. And Mortal Kombat is still better than fortnight but we got out of the house, We danced, we invented house parties in the 90s. The last of the great decades.”

This morning, he shared a video of street performers and, seemingly in response to the backlash his upcoming performance has received, wrote, “Music makes the world go around. It makes people happy. I think we could all use some happiness With all this corona mess Happening.”

Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s The Walking Dead character, Negan, continues to live on in the AMC television show. There is no reason to believe he will not continue to survive, especially as Jeffrey Dean Morgan is increasingly the face of the most popular television franchise on cable. However, had Negan been killed off in Robert Kirkman’s comic-book, his open-ended existence on the television show may not have been as logical. If Maggie had killed Negan in the comics — as Robert Kirkman had originally envisioned — fans of the series, and especially of the comics, might have had a harder time swallowing Negan’s redemption arc.

It very nearly came to pass, too, that Maggie would shoot and kill Negan, finally avenging her husband Glenn’s murder at the hands of Negan and his baseball bat, Lucille. In “Negan Lives,” a special stand-alone issue of Robert Kirkman’s comic arriving a year after he ended the comic series, Kirkman explains why he did not kill off Negan after he wrote the issue and sent it off to his illustrator, Charlie Adlard.

Adlard responded the Negan’s death with an email that convinced Kirkman to change his mind. At the end of the “Negan Lives” issue, Kirkman reveals the contents of the email. In the email, Adlard tells Kirkman him that he felt “unconvinced” by Maggie’s decision to shoot and kill Negan, that it “feels a bit forced”:

As I said, the more I got to know Negan — especially over these last few years — the more I wished he’d stayed around till the end. I wish redemption would’ve worked for him. This is absolutely no criticism of you at all, but more a criticism of western [at least] literature/entertainment, where, because the majority of us find the death penalty — therefore an eye for an eye adage — abhorrent, we carry it out in fantasy. Hardly any western villain gets away with not dying at the end. We, as an audience, always demand the ultimate punishment for our fantasy bad guys. It’s a shame we didn’t break the mould with Negan… the baddest of bad guys, but very far down the road to redemption and forgiveness, who pays the usual ultimate price — death. Imagine, if he lived, what we could say about our society?

That’s interesting, and it tracks some of what Carl said before his death, words that inspired Rick to spare Negan’s life. In a scene that mirrors the comics, Maggie also nearly had an opportunity to kill Negan in jail, but then Rick “died” and all hell broke loose. With Maggie coming back next season (whenever that is), it will be very interesting to see how well she and Negan play together.

In the meantime, “Negan Lives” is on comic-book stores now — and only in comic-book stores, because Kirkman wrote it and is given it away to comic-book store to kickstart their business in the wake of the pandemic. The issue covers Negan’s whereabouts in the comics between the moment Maggie decided to spare his life in Issue #174 and the final issue, #193. Because Kirkman had originally planned to kill him off, and because he had already mapped out the comic to the end by then, he didn’t want to introduce any more Negan stories. This covers that period for Negan, and while it does not advance Negan’s story beyond Issue #193, Kirkman is not completely ruling out that possibility.

“I’ll never say never,” Kirkman said.

In the meantime, The Walking Dead season finale is expected to air sometime this fall, along with the new spin-off series The World Beyond.

Source: The Insider

In multiple ways, this ongoing pandemic is bad news for the music industry. There are some immediately obvious signs of that, like all the concerts and festivals that have been canceled or postponed over the past few months. Overall, the industry is in danger, and a collection of over 1,500 artists recognize that. So, they’ve signed an open letter to the UK government an an effort to get them to take immediate action.

The letter is addressed to Oliver Dowden — Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport — and it insists that “government support will be crucial to prevent mass insolvencies, and the end of this great world-leading industry,” noting that “with no end to social distancing in sight or financial support from government yet agreed, the future for concerts and festivals and the hundreds of thousands of people who work in them looks bleak.”

In support of the letter, artists, festivals, venues, and other entities will posts photos and/or videos of their last live performances with the hashtag #LetTheMusicPlay on social media today (July 2). The list of artists who have attached their names to this endeavor is a long one, and it includes Ed Sheeran, Dua Lipa, Paul McCartney, Coldplay, The 1975, The Rolling Stones, Lewis Capaldi, Radiohead, Florence And The Machine, Mumford & Sons, Jamie xx, The xx, FKA Twigs, Christine And The Queens, Queens Of The Stone Age, Sting, Lee “Scratch” Perry, Idles, Alt-J, and so many others.

Read the full letter below, find the complete list of artists who have signed here, and learn more about #LetTheMusicPlay here.

“Dear Secretary of State,

UK live music has been one of the UK’s biggest social, cultural, and economic successes of the past decade. From world-famous festivals to ground-breaking concerts, the live music industry showcases, supports, and develops some of the best talent in the world – on and off-stage.

As important as it is, our national and regional contribution isn’t purely cultural. Our economic impact is also significant, with live music adding £4.5billion to the British economy and supporting 210,000 jobs across the country in 2019.

Like every part of the entertainment industry, live music has been proud to play our part in the national effort to reduce the spread of Coronavirus and keep people safe. But, with no end to social distancing in sight or financial support from government yet agreed, the future for concerts and festivals and the hundreds of thousands of people who work in them looks bleak.

This sector doesn’t want to ask for government help. The promoters, festival organisers, and other employers want to be self-sufficient, as they were before lockdown. But, until these businesses can operate again, which is likely to be 2021 at the earliest, government support will be crucial to prevent mass insolvencies, and the end of this great world-leading industry.

Government has addressed two important British pastimes – football and pubs – and it’s now crucial that it focuses on a third, live music. For the good of the economy, the careers of emerging British artists, and the UK’s global music standing, we must ensure that a live music industry remains when the pandemic has finally passed.”

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

It’s hard to imagine the sequel to Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse being better than the Oscar-winning original, which we named the best comic book movie of the 2010s. I probably said the same thing about Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man, though, and then Alfred Molina was cast as Doctor Octopus for Spider-Man 2. Little is known about the still-untitled Spider-Verse follow-up, other than it’s scheduled to come out on October 7, 2022, and Shameik Moore and Hailee Steinfeld are returning as Miles Morales and Gwen Stacy, respectively, but producer Chris Miller claims it will be “groundbreaking.”

On Thursday, Miller, one-half of the team behind Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and The Lego Movie, tweeted, “The development of new groundbreaking art techniques being done for the next Spider-Verse movie are already blowing me away. It’s going to make the first movie look quaint.” Considering Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is one of the most visually striking animated movies ever, that’s an exciting update.

Spider-Ham is going to look amazing.

If you can’t wait until October 2022 for more Spidey, there’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, the sequel to the fantastic Spider-Man, on PlayStation 5 to look forward to. It’s out later this year, while Tom Holland’s MCU Spider-Man returns in November 2021 (for now).

Or just listen to this Weird Al song.

(Via Twitter/Chris Miller)

Since the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery, earlier this year, protesters have taken to the streets across the country to demand equal justice and police reform, as the Black Lives Matter Movement has captured the national attention in a way it never has before.

The hiatus from professional sports amid the COVID-19 pandemic has offered many athletes an opportunity to engage in the movement in a way they never have before, as stars from the NBA, WNBA, NFL, and other leagues have joined protesters in their home cities and used their influence and their celebrity status to help spread awareness.

Some athletes have been entrenched in the battle for equal rights long before this year’s nationwide mobilization. WNBA star Maya Moore, for instance, sat out last season and the upcoming season in order to focus on the fight for criminal justice reform, and in March, she was able to help a man get his 50-year prison sentence overturned.

Jonathan Irons, who is now 40, has maintained his innocence on a burglary conviction that has imprisoned him since he was 18, and when he was finally released on Wednesday, Moore was there to greet him. Via Kurt Streeter of The New York Times:

Irons, 40, an African-American man convicted at age 18, was met by Moore and her family outside the Jefferson City Correctional Center, a maximum-security prison off a countryside thruway called No More Victims Road. Then Irons took his first steps into liberty as an adult.

It was the culmination of a yearslong effort by his supporters to win his freedom, a campaign that factored in a decision by Moore last year to forego playing in the W.N.B.A. at the peak of her success.

WNBA star Maya Moore sat out the entire season last year and helped overturn the conviction of Jonathan Irons, who was serving a 50-year prison sentence.

He was finally released today.

(via @MooreMaya) pic.twitter.com/fUWEEFP1nz

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) July 2, 2020

Irons was convicted by an all-white jury, with testimony from only a single eyewitness — the victim — who didn’t initially identify him from a lineup, and no DNA, fingerprint, or blood analysis evidence. Irons’ conviction was overturned back in March, but he wasn’t freed from jail until Wednesday due to the lengthy appeals process to his sentence being overturned.

Moore, who met Irons prior to beginning her UConn career, first began to concentrate her efforts on the criminal justice reform in 2016, following the murder of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO. She’s now missed two straight WNBA seasons, while still arguably in the prime of her career, and says she has no immediate plans to return to basketball.

(The New York Times)

Helena Bonham Carter has had a very all-over-the-place career. The English actress made her name with period pieces, with costume dramas like Room with a View and Howards End. Then again, she’s also done phantasmagoric Tim Burton movies, Woody Allen comedies, and, of course, Fight Club, in which the Merchant-Ivory regular was able to transform into the epically self-destructive Marla Singer (a role that was reportedly once supposed to go to Janeane Garofalo). That film has remained popular over the last 21 years, but some of its bigger fans are not who you’d think.

Carter was doing a Zoom chat with Deadline for their retrospective series The Actor’s Side, and she spoke about the roles that continue to get the most attention from fans. She then related the time she spoke with an older lady, upper class and British. “You just see her and go, ‘She’s going to be a Merchant-Ivory [fan],” Carter said. But she was taken aback when she learned the real answer: She loved Fight Club. “How great is that?” Carter gushed.

Then there’s the other side of the age spectrum. She spoke about hip 20-something men — long the target audience of David Fincher’s classic. They, too, have a surprising answer: the Harry Potter films, in which she played evil Bellatrix Lestrange. These young adults, of course, grew up watching her play what she describes as a “psychotic person,” and “they still have that inner child that goes, ‘What the f*ck!’”

The lesson her? Never assume what will stick with people. “You just don’t know what people want to talk about,” Carter says. “It’s not my doing. I don’t make these films. I’m so lucky to feature in the imaginations of these people — but very different imaginations.” She then explained her career’s wild diversity. “There’s absolutely no consistency to my career whatsoever. But that’s just me, because I like changing things up and I’m curious.”

You can watch the full interview over at Deadline.

The Houston Rockets will enter the NBA’s restart in Orlando with hopes of competing for a championship, led by their star duo of James Harden and Russell Westbrook and their frantic, small-ball attack.

The Rockets rely heavily on their core contributors and have a relatively short rotation, but going into the bubble and coming out of such a long hiatus, having depth is going to be maybe more important than usual for playoff teams, as those first round series will very likely still see players trying to round into game shape. On Wednesday, the Rockets lost a bit of versatility and depth in their rotation as forward Thabo Sefolosha has reportedly decided to opt out of the restart, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

The Rockets will have a chance to seek out a replacement for Sefolosha, and like every other player that has opted out, it is more than understandable that he would choose to do so. While Sefolosha played a relatively small role on the Rockets this season in his 41 appearances off the bench, he is a versatile wing defender on a team that relies heavily on switchability and versatility to stay afloat on that end. One would expect Houston would look to the free agent pool for someone that can fit that role, at least in part.

Well, it sounded like a good idea at the time. That’s basically Chris O’Dowd’s excuse for taking part in one of the first, and one of the most poorly received, pieces of content to emerge during the pandemic: the Gal Gadot-led “Imagine” video, in which an army of celebrities weakly sang their way through the John Lennon classic. The Bridesmaids actor finally broke his silence about taking part in the video, and his excuse essentially boils down to semi-blaming another of its participants.

“I’ll do anything Kristen [Wiig] asks me to do, so of course we just did it,” he said in an interview with the BBC’s “Grounded” podcast, as picked up by ET Canada. “It took five minutes, didn’t think about it. I presumed it was for kids. I know that Gal works for UNICEF, so I presumed it was a charity thing.”

Much like most people, O’Dowd didn’t seem to think very highly of the end results, saying it emerged during “that first wave of creative diarrhea” at the beginning of the nationwide quarantine, when the world was basically “just a bunch of people running around thinking that they had to do something when we really didn’t. We just needed to chill out and take everything in.”

The video had an impressive who’s-who of celebrities wanly singing Lennon’s song, from Mark Ruffalo to Will Ferrell to Natalie Portman to Maya Rudolph to the original screen Wonder Woman, Lynda Carter. Despite their good intentions, O’Dowd conceded that “any backlash was justified,” and said that it was “bizarre to be part of that maelstrom, I’m glad it’s over.” But is it over? After all, he oral history of Gadot’s “Imagine” video that will be done when humanity finally licks this virus should be lots of fun.

(Via BBC & ET Canada)

We’re officially in the summer season. Sure, it might not feel that way, but… ta-da! It’s here. And if the last couple of weeks are any indication, our favorite streetwear brands aren’t letting a global pandemic get them down. The fire looks keep coming.

This week brings several notable drops out of Nike, including a sustainable collection of sneakers made from trash, and a few brand crossover exclusives that’ll have sneakerheads everywhere hyped. On the apparel end, Supreme and Palace keep things fresh with a collection of summer-ready graphic t-shirts, and Anti Social Social Club links up with the Boys and Girls Club for a charity capsule.

Let’s dive into the week’s best sneaker and apparel drops!

Nike Space Hippie Collection

*Insert obligatory intro sentence about how these shoes are “literally” trash*

Yes, the Space Hippie collection is made from trash, but don’t let a gimmick get in the way of what is a pretty dope sneaker in its own right. This four-pack collection drops in familiar shapes and future uppers composed entirely of knit, with repurposed rubber midsoles, and are made of at least 45% recycled materials.

The fashion industry is littered with waste, so we applaud Nike anytime they try to cut down on that waste and provide a more sustainable product. That and the Space Hippie collection looks pretty fly.

The Space Hippie Collection is set to drop on July 3rd with a retail range of $130-$180, depending on which silhouette catches your eye. Pick up a pair through the Nike SNKRS app or select Nike retailers.

KITH Nike Air Force 1 Tokyo

It’s hard to believe that this is only KITH’s first crack at the Air Force 1 silhouette, but we’re happy it’s finally here. Featuring an elegant mix of white, sail, and red colors, this Ronnie Fieg designed iteration of the AF-1 features dual KITH and Nike branding, with a white on white swoosh, and a striking red collar — a great take on one of Nike’s best silhouettes.

The KITH Nike Air Force 1 Tokyo will be dropping as an in-store only release at the grand opening of the KITH store in Tokyo, so if you want to get your hands on a pair you’ll have to reach for the aftermarket on drop date.

Nike Dunk SP University Red

The Nike Dunk reached back to its court-bound roots this week with the release of the Nike Dunk SP in an iconic University Red colorway. The simple colors recall the original Dunk’s 1985 college-color-coordinated colorways and the design features a neutral white leather upper that pairs perfectly with the rich red. After making its mark on the world of skateboarding over the past 18 years, maybe the Dunk is eyeing defining court style for the next decade. We’ll see!

The Nike Dunk SP in University Red is out now and sold out almost immediately on the Nike webstore. Pick up a pair at select Nike retailers or on aftermarket sites like StockX.

Nice Kicks Reebok Question Mid Bubba Chuck

This take on the Question Mid Bubba Chuck is apparently inspired by Allen Iverson’s childhood nickname and a conversation that occurred between Iverson and Reebok sneaker designer Scott Hewett during a fishing trip. We’re going to guess they talked fishing lures because the Bubba Chuck sports some fishing lure-inspired glow in the dark detailing around the midsole and exudes a type of earthy vibe that feels less fitting for court antics and more geared towards those looking to take a fashionable hike.

The Reebok Question Mid Bubba Chuck is set to drop exclusively at Nice Kicks this on July 3rd for a retail price of $160.

Parley Adidas UltraBOOST DNA Pack

Parley has been crafting sustainable sneakers with Adidas on a seasonal basis now and this week the UltraBOOST gets the Parley treatment with a black and white colorway that combines Parley’s seaside aesthetic and ocean plastic fabric, with the UltraBOOSTs beloved silhouette.

The Parley Adidas UltraBOOST DNA Pack is set to drop on June 29th for a retail price of $220. Pick up a pair at the Adidas online store.

Anti Social Social Club x Boys & Girls Club Capsule

This capsule holds heavy after-school vibes, but that never stopped people from rocking DARE shirts as a fashion statement, and we doubt it’s going to stop anyone from rocking pieces from this collaborative drop between the Boys and Girls Club of Metro Los Angeles and Anti Social Social Club.

Proceeds for the capsule will go toward the mental health and wellness of the youth members involved in the Los Angeles chapter of the Boys & Girls Club and consists of a hooded sweatshirt that sports the Boys & Girl Club and ASSC logos, a t-shirt, hat, and some school supplies.

The Anti Social Social Club Boys & Girls Club capsule collection is set to drop on July 4th and will be stoppable at the ASSC webstore.

Supreme Summer 2020 T-Shirt Drop

Supreme is unloading a new set of t-shirts this week and the collection consists mostly of new and playful takes on the Supreme logo, with a couple of shirts that pay homage to Takashi Miike’s Ichi The Killer. Highlights from the collection include the Miike stills and the Supreme blur logo, which drop in several alternating colors.

The Supreme Summer 2020 t-shirt drop will arrive online on July 2nd, as well as at physical locations in countries that are no longer under lockdown. Which isn’t us.

Palace Summer Drop 8

If we covered every Palace drop we might as well change the name of this series to “PALACE DLX.” We don’t want to do that, so sometimes we pass up on Palace but this week we have to show some love to this summer t-shirt collection which is just perfect for a season that’ll be spent mostly indoors. The collection features some simple Palace logo designs and graphics and each shirt drops in about five different colors per shirt, ensuring a fit that speaks to your personal tastes.

The Palace Summer T-shirt drop will arrive on July 4th and is shoppable at the Palace webstore.

The removal of various pieces of entertainment containing blackface has become a topic of considerable conversation over the last week as various streaming sites deal with either editing or altogether removing episodes where characters have delved into the racist trope. An episode of The Office was reworked, while even The Golden Girls saw an episode taken down on Hulu because of mud masks and an off-color joke.

Those involved with shows like Scrubs have dealt with the discussion by talking about it on a podcast and possibly re-editing old episodes to take out the content altogether, but period piece Mad Men will reportedly keep its blackface scene intact when it debuts on its new streaming platforms. Vulture has details about the show’s deal with AMC Networks and IMDB.tv — which is where you’ll be able to stream the show once it all kicks in — and how it will address the season three episode “My Old Kentucky Home.”

In the episode, Roger Sterling hosts a Kentucky Derby party with his new wife, Jane. There’s a lot of tweed and mint juleps and many of the employees of Sterling Cooper at the party, which is highlighted by a moment where Roger dons blackface and sings My Old Kentucky Home to Jane using the song’s original lyrics. While many of the guests were delighted and played along in the episode, a few were very uncomfortable with Sterling’s performance, most notably Don Draper, who got up from his seat in search of a drink in a moment that actually set up a major arc of the season. This layer of story could be why the show will keep the scene when it debuts at its new home.

According to Vulture, the episode will now have the following disclaimer before it begins.

“This episode contains disturbing images related to race in America. One of the characters is shown in blackface as part of an episode that shows how commonplace racism was in America in 1963. In its reliance on historical authenticity, the series producers are committed to exposing the injustices and inequities within our society that continue to this day so we can examine even the most painful parts of our history in order to reflect on who we are today and who we want to become. We are therefore presenting the original episode in its entirety.”

Mad Men was a show that routinely explored the casual racism that existed in the 1960s. Keen viewers were meant to not internalize this racism as normal but show it as a contrast to what’s socially acceptable in the present. No character on Mad Men was a hero, really, and Sterling’s racism was an aspect of who he was as a character. Rather than erase the unsettling moment from the show altogether, AMC has made an effort to further highlight the inappropriate nature of the scene and remind viewers of the often painful and needlessly cruel past for what it was.

[via Vulture]